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--> relate in what way the historical background of the growth of a multi-racial society and the

political development prior to independence are connected to the May 13 incident?

intro-??

British intervention in Malay archipelago, how and why immigrants were brought in resulted in

the formation of multi-racial society.

The policy of "divide and rule" as practiced by the British is one of the factors that

contribute to the 13th

may incident. British colonial policy of divide and rule on the concept of an

effective action has been the cause of this gap between the races both from the economic and

racial polarization. For example, Chinese people living in cities practicing their business and also

in areas of the mine as a miner. Consequently, they possess higher assets in the economy of

Malaysia. In contrast, the Malays live in rural areas as farmers or fishermen while most Indians

were laborers and government workers in the field. The economy of the Malays and Indians are

based on self-sufficiency. These conditions lead to the weak economic position of Malays in

particular indigenous communities. The pattern of economic engagement between people indifferent economic activities has made the socio-economic imbalance.

This policy was made by the British to prevent unity among the various races who are

feared would threaten their position. Malay community consists of farmers and fishermen was

placed in the village, the Chinese inherited their business from generation to generation living in

the urban areas while the Indians, mostly employed as labor workers live in the estate. These

policies have been made possible to establish the ethnic groups living on the economic activities

in their respective groups. Consequently, the interaction between people is limited in the office

and market only. This has led to feelings of racial prejudice that has been the outbreak of inciting

the sentiments of May 13, 1969.

The Japanese occupation was experienced differently in different places and by different

groups of people. During the Japanese Occupation, the military launched numerous policies such

as the selective policy where the ethnic Chinese were treated badly because they supported the

Chinese Government during the First Sino-Japanese War in 1895 and the Second Sino-Japanese

War in 1937. Brutalities with frequent reprisals against the ethnic Chinese population and forced

financial contributions continued throughout the period of occupation. On the other hand, the

ethnic Malays and Indians were treated fairly well so that they would co-operate in order for the

Japanese to continue administering Kuala Lumpur. This biased treatment has naturally nurturedthe feelings of prejudice and hatred between Malay and Chinese communities, making racial

unity and mutual tolerance impossible on that moment.

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During the colonial period, four types of schools existedEnglish schools where English

was used as the medium of instruction and three types of vernacular schools, Malay, Chinese andIndian. Christian missionary groups also established English schools in the major towns. English

education was the best as it consisted of both primary and secondary levels and students could

further their education until university level in England or at the Raffles College in Singapore.

Although the colonial government did not feel the need to build schools for the masses, for

the Malays at least, the British felt some form of obligation to provide a basic form of

education designed to teach them to be better able to carry on in subsistence farming and

fishery as well as to develop habits of punctuality and good behavior that they do not disturb

the peace. The Chinese community actively established their own schools and imported

curricula, teachers and textbooks from China. The Indians, on the other hand, were left at the

mercy of the rubber plantation owners. Plantation owners who built schools for the children oftheir workers only saw it fit to provide a rudimentary form of terminal primary education in

dilapidated buildings. The best education was available in English schools. More non-natives

were able to benefit from English schools than natives. Therefore, the quality of Malay, Chinese

and Indian vernacular schools was generally poor as the curricula focused on their

respective motherlands. Thus, the population became divided, and remained so for more

than 150 years.

Shortly before Singapore fell to the Japanese during the early part of the Second World War

Malayan Communist Party (MCP) guerillas, who had received a certain amount of British

training, were placed in position on the mainland as a resistance force against the Japaneseoccupation. These guerillas later raised resistance units which they called "the independentregiments of the Malayan Peoples' Anti-Japanese Army" (MPAJA). This organisation was

Chinese-dominated, and later on in the course of the Occupation, was swelled by other resistance

groups. As guerillas, the MPAJA posed no serious threat to the Japanese. Despite the outwardshow of co-operation with the allies, the MCP was making preparations for developing

the MPAJA as a permanent armed force to seize power in Malaya after the Japanese defeat by

the allies. After the Japanese surrender, the MCP and the MPAJA came into the open andassumed control of the country. When they emerged from the jungles in July, 1945, they

mounted a large-scale persecution of the people, whom they accused of having committed

"crimes against the people", in addition to collaborating with the Japanese regime. The

appearance of armed Chinese in the MPAJA uniform stirred certain sections of the Chinesecommunity into taking, what the Malays felt, an arrogant and offensive attitude. For virtually

three months, between the Japanese surrender and effective British take-over, they held kangaroo

courts, committed atrocities, executed many Malays and Chinese and terrorised the populationwherever they held sway. During the brief period of the MPAJA ascendancy the torture and

killing of large numbers of innocent Malays became an episode that indelibly imprinted in

Malay minds the dangers of Chinese ascendancy. These events culminated in the outbreak of

widespread and serious clashes when the Malays retaliated against the Chinese in rural areas.

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Sino-Malay distrust runs like a thread through the nation's recent history. Racial incidents of

various types have been catalogued. The pattern that emerges indicates that the major incidentsnormally took place in Chinese-dominated areas with strong secret society organisations and

most of these incidents inevitably began with a secret society/Malay hoodlums clash. When the

United Kingdom Government decided to bestow City status on Penang, an atmosphere of

uncertainty and mistrust between the Chinese and the Malays was already prevailing. The BritishGovernment decision had a mixed reception. The Penang UMNO decided, for political reasons,

not to participate in the centenary and City-status celebrations. As a result, rumours were rife in

Georgetown that the Malays would intercept and attempt to disperse the procession.Theprocession started at 10.30 on the morning of 2nd January, 1957, without Malay participants. A

rumour went down along the line of the procession that there would be trouble. Shortly

afterwards the police vehicle leading the procession was called away to investigate a reportelsewhere. It doubled back along the procession, and this was misinterpreted by the Chinese

participating in the procession as evidence of a Malay attack further down the line. Many ofthe

participants promptly furled their flags and proceeded to break up a decorated float using the

wood as weapons while others entered houses along the procession route and armed themselves

with meat cleavers, hatchets and other weapons. The Police on duty then began to disperse theprocession, as the situation was very tense. However, a group of about 50 Chinese while

dispersing, chased some Malays into an adjacent house. A Chinese Inspector on duty whointervened to protect the Malays received head injuries from an axe and was forced

to open fire, killing one of the Chinese and wounding another. The crowd eventually dispersed

when the Officer-in-Charge of the Police District (OCPD) arrived at the scene with a Police

party. Following the above, isolated incidents of assault and minor clashes were reported.Between 2nd and 8th January, 1957 four persons were killed and 48 injured.